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The Birds gallery

What parents need to know

Positive messages

Not applicable

Violence

No gore and violence takes place off-screen, but some of the scenes, particularly the one where off-screen birds attack and wound screaming children on a playground, are downright disturbing. Some deaths.

Sex

Innuendos are couched so delicately they'll sail right over the heads of anyone under high-school age.

Language

Not applicable

Consumerism

Not applicable

Drinking, drugs, & smoking

Characters are shown drinking alcohol; one character is presented as an amusing drunk.

Parents Need to Know

Parents need to know that this film isn't dirty, gory, or any of the other things parents fear from brutal modern horror flicks, however some of the scenes, particularly the one where off-screen birds attack and wound screaming children on a playground, are downright disturbing. Most of the fear is derived from suspense.

User reviews

Parents say

Kids say

What's the story?

In an age when special effects just aren't so special, the matte paintings and animation that create the attack scenes in THE BIRDS are admittedly both tame and lame. Yet this classic shocker is still unnerving, laced with shots that haunt you after you've switched off the TV. Melanie Daniels (Tippi Hedren, a textbook example of Hitch's cool blondes) impulsively follows a bachelor Mitch Brenner (Rod Taylor) up to his hometown, Bodega Bay, for a weekend jaunt. But things go quickly awry as thousands of crows, gulls, sparrows, and other birds flock over Bodega Bay and relentlessly attack, and even kill, its residents.

Is it any good?

QUALITY

THE BIRDS is quite talky and slow; the film runs for a good 45 minutes or so before anything the slightest bit odd happens. But once the birds get going this is a real nail-biter. The birds attack at first with no warning, felling kids at an outdoor birthday party. Before long, they have trapped Melanie and Mitch's little sister and mother (Veronica Cartwright and Jessica Tandy, respectively) in the Brenner home, and it seems nothing can stop them from drilling and pecking their way in by the thousands. Although it sounds silly, in this movie, it's not.

Parents should know that this film is an excellent choice for families who love horror films. This might seem a bit tame for kids weaned on slasher flicks, but once they get they get into it, you might find them screaming for their teddy bears.

Families can talk about...

Families can talk about respecting animals and their habitats. Why do the birds attack humans?

Hitchcock is considered the master of suspense, never showing violence, but always implying it. Do you find movies scarier with or without onscreen gore?

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What parents and kids say

Good movie-- Little gore, no sex, and nothing very iffy!

I saw this movie, and didn't expect it to be too scary. The only part that freaked me out was when the woman found her father dead in his home, and the birds had pecked his eyes out. It's ok for kids 13+ and if your child is a movie buff (like me) they could probably take it at 10-11+

ok i will give you a Brief explanation about the BIRDS if you are
a parent you should know this this show has violence and disturbing content that some viewers may not like it also has a few bad language parts. theres only 1 or 2 gory parts the baddest one is when the lady walks in and sees the guy with his eyes plucked out and blood all over his eye sockets he also
has cuts and scars this movie may be old u may think its old wont be that bad well i got 2 words for you THINK AGAIN.

Great movie. But not too scary.

The birds is a very good movie. It has lots of violence but the movie has a great, well thought out story to it instead of just mindless violence like some movies. There is a tiny bit of mature but its very brief and well hidden. It is pretty violent and bloody but nothing over the top. It's kinda cheesy so it isn't terrifying. Overall parents and mature kids can enjoy this movie.

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